Kureishi wins at Asian Achievers Awards

Novelist Hanif Kureishi has won the accolade for achievement in media, arts and culture at the Asian Achievers' Awards.

The awards,...

Novelist Hanif Kureishi has won the accolade for achievement in media, arts and culture at the Asian Achievers' Awards.

The awards, which celebrate individuals who have inspired communities and achieved outstanding accomplishments in their respective fields, were held on Friday (19th September) at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

Kureishi said he was “really proud” of the award, but added a warning to aspiring writers not to be "naive", commenting: “I never realised quite how difficult it would be, and what a nightmare it would be, trying to be a successful writer. I managed to survive, but I had no idea at the beginning how hard it would be."

He added: “As an artist, the only thing that matters is you’re your own person. You work as you have to and tell stories that you have to tell. You can’t tell stories someone else wants you to tell.”

The speaker at the event was Phillip Hammond, secretary of state for foreign and commonwealth affairs, and guests included Cherie Blair and India's High Commissioner to the UK, His Excellency Ranjan Mathai.

Among other winners on the night were experimental physicist Sir Tejinder Singh Virdee and music producer Shahid Khan.

Kureishi's most recent work was novel The Last Word (Faber), published in January.